Genevieve Spectrum
Info Genevieve started life in tragedy, her mother dying in childbirth. Her father has raised her by himself, trying his best to both raise a successful law firm and a young girl who would have a strong sense of justice. Background Gen grew to a fairly privileged life, her father’s hard work quickly paying off. She was quite popular in school, though occasionally a bit overcritical of her peers, knowing more then they did about potential ramifications in society. Just 15 years old, she attended a party at a certain rich kid’s home. Gen knew this kid was dealing drugs, and was curious to find out where he was getting them. Slipping away from the main party, she had the opportunity to test the lockpicking skills she’d honed both in working with her father’s police connections and in getting into stuff her father didn’t wish her to. Inside the father’s study, she not only found a wall safe containing a good haul of various street drugs, but enough paperwork to reveal to her trained eye that the man was trafficking drugs as a runner for The Crime Lords! About this time, she heard steps coming down the hallway. Knowing there was but this one destination down this hall, she quickly closed the safe and repositioned the painting in front of it. Right at that time, the door opened. Gen reacted instinctively, taking a deep breath and dropping to the floor. Knowing she was in a helpless position, she closed her eyes and hoped for the best. When no one said anything, despite the noise of someone moving around the room, she opened her eyes… and saw nothing, only a distorted white haze. Everything beyond it was blurry! The figure moved back out of the room, closing the door behind it. Finally letting out the breath she’d been holding, the world around her gradually came back into focus. Surprised at the revelation that know one saw her, she also then realized she was on the floor, only a few feet down the wall from the safe, and in plain sight! Well, apparently not in plain sight…. She quickly made her exit, and slipped away from the party. She had a lot on her mind on the way home. A year passed, during which Gen explored the details of that evening further, and revealed even more talents. She found she could emanate an aura of while brilliant white light, and focus light into beams of various colors and intensities. After some further research into the properties of light, she could heat Hot Pockets with ease. She also found that she could create mirages, or light illusions, of anything she had enough familiarity with. She couldn’t generate sound however, and thinking the application had its limits then, started practicing ventriloquism. All this research left her fairly withdrawn from her normal social circles, and when you stop being rich and popular, they don’t let you forget it. She became an outcast, which suited her just fine. She put a lot of her time into art classes, where she would study forms and actions to better polish her powers. It was there that she met her first Goth, and then that she decided the life of those who lived with such an artistic embrace may suit her. It also brought her into dark clubs and another drug scene that revolved around music. Her innate sense of justice found this fitting, as it allowed her to keep quiet tabs on the possible up-and-comers. Her best friend at this time was dating the singer for a local band, who was having problems getting gigs. Feeling bad, since the guy was actually good hearted, Gen snuck behind the stage on night and put on a bit of a lightshow, generating colors based on how she felt the songs. This went on a few nights, and the band became ever more popular. Questions were asked, but with her light bending, Gen made sure no one ever saw her. The naïve guys in the band began to think they had a spirit watching over them. Unfortunately, this wasn’t to last. Another guy in the band had the presence of mind to make the connection between the singer and his girlfriend… and her mysterious friend. Rather then ask questions directly, he figured the knowledge would make him more money. It did, and the broker happened to work for The Crime Lords, who were then kidnapping test subjects to help recruiting. They caught Gen exiting out the back alley after a show, captured her and took her to a holding cell in an abandoned warehouse. Finally left alone in total darkness, Gen regained wits enough to try and escape. The steel door didn’t have any lock, so Gen started burning her way through with an intense laser beam. However, a problem she had considered but had been to afraid to try came to pass: the beam cost too much to generate, and without any ambient light, her laser sputtered and died halfway though. She was trapped, and powerless. Two days passed. Late on the second night, her cell door was thrown open, and she was blinded by the flashlights shown upon her. A SWAT team had come to shake down the warehouse for drug and slave trafficking, and rescued Gen from what they thought was a life of slavery. It probably was, of a different sort, however that wouldn’t be known. Gen’s father, Victor, prosecuted the case personally. They were only able to get the warehouse owner and a few others on small charges though; everyone else further up the chain were being sponsored by the Crime Lords, placed before a crooked judge, and never saw a courtroom. Victor took this as a major failing; though he was more than grateful his daughter survived. He vowed, to himself and to her that they would answer for their crimes. That same evening, Victor and Genevieve had a long talk. She revealed her powers to her astonished father, and explained how she had gotten into trouble in the first place, following her own sense of justice. Of course Victor was quite proud in his daughters chosen path, but horrified that she had made herself into a target he couldn’t possibly protect. Victor researched and made good use of his connections, finding a place that could help his only child better than he could. The week before her 17th birthday, he told Gen of his plans to place her in the care of the Academy. She wasn’t pleased at all about the prospect of leaving home, but knew in her heart that he was making the best decision he thought possible. With some reluctance, she spent her birthday packing and making her few farewells. In a tearfully short goodbye, she left the only home she had ever known. Current Sketch Genevieve is smart, young, and pretty; a fairly typical teenager. As the daughter of an attorney, she is well-versed in law, and researching various topics. She has a laptop with Westlaw access and court programs granted to her through her father. This allows her to research myriad legal cases, as well as research anyone that has a criminal background. She has also spent a lot of time with her father’s best friend, a Personal Investigator named Phillip Jackson, or “Uncle Phil”. This is where she picked up her process investigation techniques, and lockpicking skills. Gen has also spent a lot of time thinking through her powers, and their limitations. After her kidnapping, she threw herself back into those studies, suspecting then and knowing now that without ambient light to draw upon and store, she would be effectively powerless, she planned to never be caught helpless again. Gen has begun studying various martial arts to make up for her slight build. The training, she figures, will also help her retain her analytical mind so she will be less likely to panic and be caught unawares again. She is already an accomplished fencer, owing to many hours of family bonding and the settling of a few disputes with her father, a fencing wizard. Powers and Abilities *''Light Spectrum Control'' - Generation, Absorption, and Emission of light in various colors and intensities, from microwaves to gamma rays, etc. This can be generated in thin beams from her fingertips, to more full blasts from her fists, and possibly a radius attack if she discharged from her full body. Also includes Blinding Flashes. (think camera) *''Light Bending'' – effectively leaving her invisible to normal sight. (Not effective against super senses not derived from sight or the blind.) *''Holograms'' – An advanced bending of light, Gen can create mirages to fool her foes. Limitations the same as light bending, and though she can make the images move if needed, they themselves cannot generate sound. Gen is practicing her ventriloquism to make this power more useful. *''Light Dispersion - Gen can disperse her human form into light particles, which follow the same rules as normal light barring the obvious. She can use this to pass through non-opaque objects like glass, and can move fairly quickly. However, she's currently uncomfortable with the ability and tends to save it for a last resort escape. She is visible in this form as a bunch of sparkling lights while moving, though if she concentrates she can slow down and appear as a light beam with flecks of dust moving within. *Nightvision ''- By amplifying ambient light, Gen can see in the dark and help others to. She can also do this with more subtlety, and emit light from her eyes, though this does feed on her stored power. She rarely does this in front of others, as her eyes glow pupil-less white, which she thinks is kinda creepy. If she's hiding at the time, she'll bend the light around her to eliminate the effect. :::::::::: All of Gen's power's can be colored to her liking, but generally the intensity of the light being projected will color it in combat situations. (within human perception) Generally Gen projects pure white light with no color. Equipment Gen carries a small set of lockpicks, and a few bobby pins hidden in her hair. Her Goth sensibilities also extend to practicality; the trenchcoat she wears carries any number of suitable objects for whatever situation she can anticipate. She has many glow sticks secreted upon her person for emergencies, and carries her father’s Zippo lighter, which he gave to her after their talk. He has promised to quit smoking while she carries it, because if she has it she’s essentially as safe as he can make her, and he can worry less. He considered that more then fair. She also has a length of rope, a small flashlight, and a pen and notepad. Sheathed behind the small of her back or along her right thigh in a special sheath is a fencing rapier. She may also carry her pocket PC if she’s going information gathering, and she has a flare gun she carries on a whim. She figures it beats a normal gun, since it can be offensive, a distraction, a signal, and a source of energy should she need it. She's been known to carry a Powershot G-10 when the mood strikes her. She’s not much for jewelry, only tending to wear a watch on a thick wristband (with a backlight, of course) and a crystal pendant that was her mother's. Family Father Victor A.; Mother deceased. Gen has a few cousins on her mother’s side in Illinois and Indiana, but none known to her on her father’s side, and he has never told her otherwise. “No one worth mentioning.” Quotes "You'd think a place like this would have better security. Pssh. Whatever." - upon entering the ACADEMY by..... opening the front door. (Issue #2) "Maybe others have a flair for the dramatic. I have no need of extra, unwanted, attention." With no response quickly forthcoming, and no real desire to start or continue a conversation, Gen let her eyes roam over the boys one final time, then dropped her attention back to her desk. Oddly, it seemed like she still hadn't blinked the whole time... JR looks at her intently at he dark clothes and eyeliner, trying to remember something about what he read in his research, in one of those insufferable "teen magazines" he forced himself through. Suddenly he figure it out and snaps. "Oh wait I know. You are one of those Elmo people aren't you? HI, Gen, I'm JR ." JR smiles, obviously proud of himself, and flashes his best winning smile. (Issue #2) "Meglio un giorno da leone che cento da pecora." or 'Better one day as a lion than a hundred as a sheep.' (Issue #2) Links Genevieve at the ACADEMY Gen's HERO stats